What type of man has the courage and fortitude to make the ultimate sacrifice? Since history began, tales have emerged of men and women who’ve sacrificed their lives for freedom from oppression and tyranny. September 11, 2001…that day, tales of bravery, selflessness, and sacrifice were repeated over and over such as firefighters and police officers who went back into a building after the first one collapsed to save the lives of those still trapped, losing their lives in the process. This writer remembers the story of a man who was working on one of the upper level floors when the planes crashed into the two towers. He could have escaped but instead chose to remain behind with a co-worker who was wheel-chair bound and unable to take the stairs to safety. Both he and his co-worker called loved ones with their goodbyes before the collapse of the Twin Towers. Passengers on flight 93 overpowered their hijackers crashing the plane short of its intended target of our Nation’s capital. To understand the type of men and women who shaped the great state of Texas, it’s necessary to comprehend the type of people that were willing to lay down their lives instead of surrendering to broken promises and loss of hope.
The next few blogs will focus on those very men and women that chose not give in to the beginning of the tyrannical rule of a dictator by the name of Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.
A few names that will be mentioned include:
Sam Houston
Stephen F. Austin
James Fannin
Jim Bowie
James Bonham
Davy Crockett
Louis Moses Rose
William B. Travis
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| The Alamo |
Legends and historical accounts will hopefully allow my fellow thunderbirdnesters to gain insight into the men who led and fought in the battles for Texas Independence. When you have the opportunity to walk through the Alamo during our visit to San Antonio, echoes of this last stand may ring in your ears. Listen closely for the ghosts of the past to tell their stories. To native Texans, the Alamo is hallowed ground. We revere this sacred site; it is our Gettysburg, our Pearl Harbor, and our Bastogne.
Next week’s blog: The Battle of Gonzales
